Handling daytime child care for newborn cancer patient

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Op here - Would love recommendations on how to find a newborn care specialist - sounds perfect

You need a pediatric oncologist nurse! Either that or you quit your job and take care of your child and I cannot imagine why you aren't doing this

You have no clue what you are talking about. OP herself isn't a nurse. And maybe OP needs to work because she carries the health insurance her kid needs.

Also, even if OP needs a medical professional, why does she need a pediatric oncology (it's "oncology" not "oncologist") nurse? A RN or LPN experienced with infant patients should be able to handle this job. A pediatric oncology nurse is a REALLY specialized type of nurse and they rarely do private care.

I know this. I would not leave a child in this condition for a nanny to care for. Her husband works so money is coming on but I would never leave a child who is so vulnerable.

[Anonymous]

If you haven’t done so already, you might want to apply for the FMLA — in case you want to take additional time off from your job or be available for intermittent care if it should be needed.

I don’t know where your daughter gets her care - but could you talk with a social worker at either Children’s Hospital or the hospital where she has received care? They might be able to direct you to resources — including options for the specialized care that your daughter seems to need. It would be great if you could get a moonlighting pediatric nurse or someone with a medical background. Wishing you well with whatever decisions make sense for your family.

[Anonymous]

OP Here - pediatric oncology nurses mostly do chemotherapy infusions and other specialized stuff. We don't need our caregiver to do this because it happens at Georgetown where her oncologist is. Also, we can't quit our jobs without losing health insurance and our ability to cover our other expenses so need to find help. Thanks for all the advice - its very helpful. We are thinking of offering $30-35 an hour with a "completion bonus" of a couple grand on the last day of her chemotherapy to encourage the caregiver to stick with this for the year. Thoughts on this rate?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP Here - pediatric oncology nurses mostly do chemotherapy infusions and other specialized stuff. We don't need our caregiver to do this because it happens at Georgetown where her oncologist is. Also, we can't quit our jobs without losing health insurance and our ability to cover our other expenses so need to find help. Thanks for all the advice - its very helpful. We are thinking of offering $30-35 an hour with a "completion bonus" of a couple grand on the last day of her chemotherapy to encourage the caregiver to stick with this for the year. Thoughts on this rate?

More than reasonable. But, I would try to get someone trained vs. someone willing to learn for that amount.

[Anonymous]

OP my sibling was disabled with a g-tube and needed to be cathed, etc., and qualified for a home health aid through Medicaid. To echo the previous poster, have you explored that option? Is the baby eligible for Medicaid?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would not feel comfortable with any of your options. I would quiet my job, if that was in any way possible.

Np. This is what I would do. I know it is a difficult decision but I know I would feel guilty if something happened under someone else's care. If it really only two years than that has got to be more economical if you do it versus a nurse as a nanny which sounds like what you need.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP Here - pediatric oncology nurses mostly do chemotherapy infusions and other specialized stuff. We don't need our caregiver to do this because it happens at Georgetown where her oncologist is. Also, we can't quit our jobs without losing health insurance and our ability to cover our other expenses so need to find help. Thanks for all the advice - its very helpful. We are thinking of offering $30-35 an hour with a "completion bonus" of a couple grand on the last day of her chemotherapy to encourage the caregiver to stick with this for the year. Thoughts on this rate?

More than reasonable. But, I would try to get someone trained vs. someone willing to learn for that amount.

My mil pays someone 25 an hour and all she has to do is make meals , clean the house and make meals. Would pay more since it is life and death.

[Anonymous]

$30 is cheap - that's basically the going rate for a Nanny. My.hisband and I quickly ruled out a Nanny because a good one under these conditions could easily be "bought" by another family- meaning leave for a higher offer. In your case, higher offer and less work.

Honestly do you even know how much time you might have left with this child? I'd quit and under normal circumstances I feel strongly about working.

[Anonymous]

OP again - quitting our jobs is not an option and paying for a nanny is definitely where we are leaning. We make enough and have saved enough that we can handle the cost of a nanny for a year though it will be financially painful. Much less painful than pausing a career and potentially having trouble re-starting.

Home health could be an option - we have an LPN overnight that insurance pays for. However I don't think a nurse is really what we need because 90% of the baby's care is normal baby care stuff and we really want that part to be done right - just that feeding is very different and the caregiver needs to be conscious and comfortable with keeping her g tube and central line clean, monitoring the pulse ox machine, and using the CPAP mask.

Finally, the prognosis for the baby is very positive - once chemo is complete she is expected to be likely to develop normally. So we are really only looking at needing something for a year. This isn't a tragic terminal cancer situation (or at least it is not expected to be - obviously anything could happen to any of us!).

Sound like we should be offering $35-40 which seems like its getting pretty high since the LPN through the agency would be $45 and I'm sure the agency takes a significant chunk of that.

[Anonymous]

Any way you could financially swing a leave of absence?

[Anonymous]

Hi OP,

I agree that $30/hr sounds low for someone experienced, but also understand that you have budget constraints to consider. If I were you, I would advertise a range between $30/hr - $40/hr DOE. See who you get and ask about rates. A lot of people exclude good candidates by posting rates that are too low, so offering a range will allow you more flexibility. If you find someone great who was paid $25/hr before, $30/hr might be great for them. But if you find most experienced candidates are $35+, then you have some wiggle room without going through an agency.

That's a great idea to offer the completion bonus!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again - quitting our jobs is not an option and paying for a nanny is definitely where we are leaning. We make enough and have saved enough that we can handle the cost of a nanny for a year though it will be financially painful. Much less painful than pausing a career and potentially having trouble re-starting.

Home health could be an option - we have an LPN overnight that insurance pays for. However I don't think a nurse is really what we need because 90% of the baby's care is normal baby care stuff and we really want that part to be done right - just that feeding is very different and the caregiver needs to be conscious and comfortable with keeping her g tube and central line clean, monitoring the pulse ox machine, and using the CPAP mask.

Finally, the prognosis for the baby is very positive - once chemo is complete she is expected to be likely to develop normally. So we are really only looking at needing something for a year. This isn't a tragic terminal cancer situation (or at least it is not expected to be - obviously anything could happen to any of us!).

Sound like we should be offering $35-40 which seems like its getting pretty high since the LPN through the agency would be $45 and I'm sure the agency takes a significant chunk of that.

It’s smart of you to pay whatever you have to to keep your job. All the people who say “just quit” have obviously never try to reenter the job market. It would take years, not months, to get back to where you are now.

I’m so happy that your baby has a good prognosis, but sorry that you all are going through this. I can’t imagine how difficult and terrifying it’s been. Best to all of you, and I hope you find a competent and loving nanny to look after your baby. A lot of people are looking for work right now, and I don’t think there’s anything that your baby needs that he careful and intelligent novice couldn’t be trained to do. Let us know how it works out.

[Anonymous]

I wonder if this would be a good gig for a newly retired nurse, or a nurse who has decided COVID is the straw that breaks the camel's back in terms of personal risk and has left a hospital environment or pediatrician's office recently.

Such person would already be vetted for nursing competence, trained, and since the care sounds like it would be temporary (1-2 years) perhaps a good fit for their life. How you find them...I don't know. Ask existing nurses maybe? An agency? Perhaps two who rotate?

Of course you'd want someone who likes babies and is a natural and warm and fun, but I would imagine these people might self-select.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again - quitting our jobs is not an option and paying for a nanny is definitely where we are leaning. We make enough and have saved enough that we can handle the cost of a nanny for a year though it will be financially painful. Much less painful than pausing a career and potentially having trouble re-starting.

Home health could be an option - we have an LPN overnight that insurance pays for. However I don't think a nurse is really what we need because 90% of the baby's care is normal baby care stuff and we really want that part to be done right - just that feeding is very different and the caregiver needs to be conscious and comfortable with keeping her g tube and central line clean, monitoring the pulse ox machine, and using the CPAP mask.

Finally, the prognosis for the baby is very positive - once chemo is complete she is expected to be likely to develop normally. So we are really only looking at needing something for a year. This isn't a tragic terminal cancer situation (or at least it is not expected to be - obviously anything could happen to any of us!).

Sound like we should be offering $35-40 which seems like its getting pretty high since the LPN through the agency would be $45 and I'm sure the agency takes a significant chunk of that.

Looking at what you need (tube feeding, CPAP, etc. in addition to infant care and exercise/movement) one option may be to find a pediatric CNA. They do a lot of these types of tasks in care settings and also in settings like camps/day camps for disabled children.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I wonder if this would be a good gig for a newly retired nurse, or a nurse who has decided COVID is the straw that breaks the camel's back in terms of personal risk and has left a hospital environment or pediatrician's office recently.

Such person would already be vetted for nursing competence, trained, and since the care sounds like it would be temporary (1-2 years) perhaps a good fit for their life. How you find them...I don't know. Ask existing nurses maybe? An agency? Perhaps two who rotate?

Of course you'd want someone who likes babies and is a natural and warm and fun, but I would imagine these people might self-select.

You may want to try to make contact with a local collegiate nursing program, but find a personal contact who will listen to your concerns. Maybe ask to make an appointment to discuss if they can help network you to the right individual.